Laser, light, or Night sights

[gym]

Over 40 years of shooting and carrying, and I still can't decide whatto put, "if anything", on my latest 2 carry guns. I have had all 3, the lasermax on a LC9, worked pretty darn good, "but I hated the gun", so I bought a shield for a hundred and the Ruger, also an XDS.I have front NS on my 30 Glock, "makes the gun easy to see at night". But I don't know if it helps on a moving target. Same with a laser. Now a light like a CT setup, is good because you can light up the target.
Even though I keep a few tac lights near my bed, you still need to remember to grab one if it's not on the gun. Plus I hate to light myself up at night, no matter how long it's on, you are giving the bad guy something to shoot at.
So what is you opinion, any of the above, 2 or 3? or none.

 

[Coop45]

I like night sight, but they need to be supplemented with a laser because without my glasses they are a blur (even the Big Dot XS sight).

 

[Yo Mama]

On a handgun, laser.

Shotgun, light.

 

[LeonCarr]

A light, first and foremost.

You can't identify a target friend or foe with night sights or a "LA-SER" (Saying Laser in my best Dr. Evil voice).

Just my .02,
LeonCarr

 

[VINTAGE-SLOTCARS]

"I would prefer" night sights first , laser 2nd, and light 3rd hand held light not gun mounted.

 

[bergmen]

This has troubled me as well. Never having owned a laser sight, I bought a pair of Ruger LCRs with the CT laser grips for me and my wife. After practicing and practicing we think that they may have some use in compromising situations but we tend to look at them more as a gimmick than a tactical sighting system.

I'm more comfortable with TFO sights on my autos (tritium + fiber optics). These sights are excellent in daylight and have some glow at night. A light of some sort is a must for dark indoors situations and I prefer standard sight alignment with TFOs over the "weirdness" of a laser.

What we found out right off with our laser sights is with a standard Weaver stance with the sights aligned it would "compete" with the laser dot and result in confusion. We changed to a sort of raised "low ready" position to not use the sights at all and only use the laser for POI. We don't like having to use two different positional responses so we punted to the TFOs.

Dan

 

[Sam1911]

Hand-held white light is most important. Then night sights are nice.

 

[stonecutter2]

In my opinion, light, then night sights, then laser.

Identifying your target is priority 1 for me. The light is critical for that. Mounted on a rail or hand held.

Night sights help you be on target, however night sights are also nice when pulling out of the safe, groggy and bleary eyed. Gives you some bearing on what you're doing without giving away your position.

Laser is last because it's probably the one that's mostly for helping/guiding but not a necessity. If you can't ID what you're hitting with a light and night sights, you shouldn't be willing to pull the trigger. I just wouldn't rely on a laser.

 

[desidog]

Night sights and lasers are for aiming the gun.

A light is for identifying what you're aiming it at...

 

[Isaac-1]

For me it is about seeing the sights if I don't have my glasses on, this is the reason I have CT grip laser on my normal carry gun, sure 99% of the time if I am awake I will have my glasses on, but they could be knocked off while taking cover, etc. For the things that go bump in the night I have an 870 with a Surefire light.

 

[Manco]

On a handgun, laser.

Shotgun, light.

Personally, I don't differentiate that much between long guns and handguns (in a home defense scenario). In my opinion, we all must have a light source of some kind in order to identify potential targets, possibly in complete darkness. A weapon-mounted light can serve this purpose for both long guns and handguns, operated in both cases by the support hand. This takes some training to avoid pointing the muzzle of either class of firearm directly at potential targets before they are identified and minimize the risk of accidentally shooting the wrong person.

As for the differences, handguns allow you to use a flashlight in the support hand instead, allowing you to direct the beam independently of the muzzle, which is useful, but the tradeoffs are that you may have to put the flashlight down or in your pocket in order to use your support hand for other purposes, and you won't have the most solid two-handed grip on your gun. I would recommend having both types of light available, if possible (note that weapon-mounted lights are bulky to carry, which is a non-issue for home defense), using one as the primary according to whatever you are more comfortable with, and keeping the other as a backup (I don't trust batteries).

Regarding lasers, they're useful for various aspects of training, but are unnecessary for those who are proficient with iron sights (except perhaps for some odd cases where you can't use the sights). I wouldn't bother with actually using one for defensive purposes unless I were currently under-proficient with iron sights for any reason (e.g. lack of training, various physiological issues), in which case anything that would make me a more effective shooter is justified, including lasers. If you do choose to use a laser, then be aware that they barely work in the daytime (useless in sunlight), and that you should keep developing your skill with iron sights and point-shooting (like I said, I don't trust batteries).

Finally, night sights are not absolutely necessary for everybody, but they can help under some conditions, and aside from cost there is really no reason not to recommend them.

In order of importance:

1) Light source - A usefully bright, directed light that helps you reliably identify people is a must, whether it is mounted on your weapon or held in your hand (or both).

2) Night sights - If you don't mind paying for them, they can come in handy at times, and really have no tradeoffs unless you happen to shoot better with all-black sights.

3) Laser - Use one as a crutch if you must (anything to improve your odds of survival, if in fact it would), but try to wean yourself off it by training with the iron sights (under all lighting conditions).

 

[Skribs]

I don't like lasers, personally. If anything I'd put on a RDS instead of night sights. You should have a light, whether or not its on the gun is up to you.

 

[au01st]

My XD40 shoots just below the middle of the beam on my rail mounted light, meaning if I light up a figure at 10 yards I can pull the trigger and hit mid torso. Not gonna try and line up a shot using sights, it will all be on muscle memory.

Now my 1911 has a laser, but that's just for fun.

 

[Ehtereon11B]

None of my weapons have night sights. They typically cost way too much (tritium especially) for what they are. You cannot expect to get into a perfect stance to aim down your sights every time, this is why I like laser sights. I have had to shoot targets (living ones and non) without being able to look down sights or an optic but instead with a laser designator. Whatever you are comfortable with is what you should use.

I am a big fan of light/laser combos. It isn't the 1980's anymore and large sized lasers don't need backpack batteries. Streamlight, Surefire, and Viridian make great combos and some don't even extend past the barrel or the trigger guard. My CCW and my home defense pistols both have a Viridian C5L and could not be happier.

 

[jmr40]

I'd never consider a gun for serious use without night sights. The cost is neglible, about the cost of a couple of boxes of premium ammo and they last 12-13 years.

A quality flashlight held in the hand is just as important.

Lasers can be useful, but at around $300 a set are a little harder to justify. I used to think they were not viable until I bought a used gun that already had Crimson Trace grips on it. They work, but I doubt if I'd spend the extra when I had night sights insttalled on all of my Glocks for under $60 each.

 

[c4v3man]

but at around $300 a set

An insight M6 runs closer to $200 and provides both a light and a laser. Looks like Streamlight has models closer to $100 that also have both a laser and a light.

I see no reason not to have one for home defense... It's also a buy-once use forever kinda deal, where you can easily move it from gun to gun.

Getting a holster can be a hassle though...

 

[kyarcher]

I think a laser on a snub nose or similar small type pistol is almost a must. At least it is for me.

 

[Mamertine]

I totally don't get lasers on handguns, in fact to me they SCREAM tacticool. I like to think that anyone who is going to use a handgun is going to be proficient enough to hit something person sized at 10 feet using natural point of aim. If you are having issues hitting targets at that range or beyond it's likely trigger control not aiming that is your problem anyways.

 

[Texasrpbrock]

My opinion rather right or wrong is if they see my laser, I'm now their target. I'd rather have the element of them not knowing my location. If I can't hit the target at 5 yards or less in a fairly dark environment, then I've probably already lost the battle. I'm not really confident that a crack head breaking into my castle is going to care if I have a light rail or laser. I do like night sights but feel safety drills regular practice will up your odds more so than gadgets. The most desirable option is lots of practice. But safety first. I've got a very loud first alert system (dog). Outdoors it's a matter of being conscious of your surroundings. There is no perfect scenario.

 

[Texasrpbrock]

I totally don't get lasers on handguns, in fact to me they SCREAM tacticool. I like to think that anyone who is going to use a handgun is going to be proficient enough to hit something person sized at 10 feet using natural point of aim. If you are having issues hitting targets at that range or beyond it's likely trigger control not aiming that is your problem anyways.

I agree 100 percent!

 

[Ragnar Danneskjold]

Handheld and weapon mounted lights should always be used in tandem. The handheld is for the initial searching and identifying with the mounted used as backup. You don't want to silhouette yourself with your own light and provide a target for the bad guy. But if you need to cover a bad guy with your gun/light while you call police, open doors, treat your own wounds etc, you need that mounted light to free up your other hand. This also applies if you need to move through your home with your support arm occupied, such as carrying a child.

Handheld lights and mounted lights both have strengths and weaknesses. They are both at the best when used in tandem with the other.